Outstanding MP3 Resources Through Sovereign Grace Ministries

Hey folks,

Trust you all are having a great week! I have been spending this week in somewhat of an "in house" study retreat. We have a great opportunity this Sunday to hear from a Pastor's College Student - and so with this extra time, I have been immersing myself in study developing leadership training materials for our Care Group and Ministry Team leaders and as I have done so, I couldn't help but just remind you of the absolute wealth of material we have through the Sovereign Grace Ministries website! I want to encourage you that there are years and years of FREE MP3 messages on line at http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/ As I have been compiling resources by going through their database, I could not help but think of how blessed we are to have such rich gospel-centered teaching and preaching with its focus on applying God's word to our lives. Enjoy!

C.J., Discernment, Giving Correction & The Emergent Church

As you will note at the top of my blog page here it says, "random musings & reflections," and the title of this blog entry might appear to be random, but there are many connections I want you to make with the above stated title. I wanted to direct you to a particular blog entry by C.J. Mahaney on these particular topics, and more than the content (of which is extremely valuable and I believe personally very necessary to address), I want you to see how C.J. communicates doctrinal discernment and the necessity of bringing correction to particular voices in our culture. Here in, is both a bold proclaimation of the truth of the gospel without wavering while a humble pursuit of the mortification of the sin of self-righteousness in his own heart accompanied with a loving desire for see those who walk in doctrinal error to come to the truth and be restored by it.

Again, I cannot say it enough, I am so very, very grateful to God for this man and his humble, bold, biblical discernment that he brings to pastors such as myself. His blog subtitle has the phrase, "from the cheapseats," well then, from mine it is from the "much cheaper seats" - out in the parking lot per say. Here are some specific connections I want you to see, (I am sure there are more, because I am not that discerning - but here is what my thick melon absorbed)...

1. The purposefulness of how C.J. leads. He is specific and very intentional. This speaks to me in how to lead, not only as a pastor, but as a husband and father in how I speak and spend my time with my family. That we are not just transfering information, but in how it is done communicates volumes and without being intentional this way - many opportunities are lost, or not used as well as they could be.

2. The need for doctrinal discernment and specifically how C.J. does this. He communicates clearly how such doctrinal error effects and breaks ranks with "gospel" preaching and doctrine.

3. He is humble in how he directs us to other men and their study and how God has used them. Many "bloggers" might spend much time pontificating ideas that came from other men's studies, but C.J. as a man who is in active pursuit of humility not only gives credit to whom credit is due, but introduces us to another friend, Mr. Greg Gilbert, (click here for his article on Rob Bell's Nooma material).

4. He is humble and gracious in his obversations of those who fall into doctrinal error, such as Rob Bell, while exhorting us to uphold this man lovingly in prayer that he might come to a place of truly embracing the gospel and supremacy.

5. He promotes a biblically healthy self-suspecion of our own motives while critiquing others. Look at this quote from his blog:

"Whenever it’s necessary to critique erroneous content, I find it helpful to
remind myself of the mercy of God. Any insight I have learned has been learned
from others, and ultimately, this discernment has been graciously revealed by
God. In no way does my critique indicate intellectual or moral superiority on my
part. We must critique erroneous content, but our critique must be humble and
not self-righteous.If we accurately perceive God’s mercy, this will become an
occasion of thanking God for his mercy in our lives rather than an opportunity
for self-righteous communication." -C.J. Mahaney

6. Note how he is specific in the training of pastors on how we are to think. While directing us in content on a particular error he is training us how to think about these things, not just what to think about it. This is equipping leadership.

7. His critque is informed by the gospel, thus it has not only the passion of protecting the gospel, but he reveals the hope that there is for us when we fall into error that only comes from the gospel.

From the much cheaper seats - read, enjoy, be informed, and may we be increasingly changed,

Matthew

Together For The Gospel Is Almost Here!

Hey men, if any of you would like to come to this year's Together for the Gospel Conference, come on! Registration is ending soon! Likewise, if you are an area pastor and are going, as I have met several of you within the last couple of years and you are going, email me so we can hook up. This is going to be an outstanding time! Log on to

www.t4g.org to register!

Sanity Has Now Returned To The Asylum!

Yes my friends, my bride is back from a long two week trip in Seattle Washington, saying good bye to her much loved Grandpa Glen. The kids no longer are ruled by the barbarian. Christian's hair is now combed, and we all have lost that blank look off of our faces. Color, beauty and life have come back to our home. Anna is such a wonderful wife, friend and mother. She does bring such joy into my life, and I am such a blessed man having her as my bride! I know people must look at us all the time and think, "How did he get to marry her?" I don't know...the only thing I can say is, "grace." We missed her greatly, but were very glad she was able to have this time with her family. We only wish we all could have been able to go with her. Thank you to all who have been praying for Anna and our family. You are a joy!

Help! The Inmates Have Taken Over The Asylum!

Only 24 hours until Anna returns and brings life, color and joy back into the Hoffman house...I need to go...and I think give Christian a bath...or something...

5 Myths About Divorce by Ken Sande

In the day and age we live in there are many "myths" that many Christians believe about this topic...yesterday I received this great article from Ken Sande author of the book, "Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide To Resolving Conflict."

***

Five Myths of Divorce
By Ken Sande, President of Peacemaker Ministries

I have noticed over the years that Christians who are in the process of seeking a divorce often use the same set of reasons to justify their decision to leave the marriage. I have heard the same excuses so often that I have wondered whether Satan has published a little booklet on how to justify divorce.

While Christians disagree about what constitutes legitimate grounds for divorce, it is clear that many Christians divorce for all the wrong reasons. We need people around us to speak truth to us and help us see our own blind spots so that we are not fooled by worldly wisdom or by the blindness in our own hearts. Perhaps you can play that role in the life of someone considering divorce. If you want to help them, you need to be prepared to respond to these excuses.

Myth #1
"When the love has gone out of a marriage, it's better to get divorced." Although this is the world talking, Christians buy into it. The basis of marriage is not feelings of love—in God's design, commitment is the basis of marriage, and love is the fruit. For more on God's design for marriage, see Paul Tripp's booklet Marriage: Whose Dream?

Myth #2
"It's better for the children to go through a divorce than to live with parents who fight all the time." Although parents in a truly unhappy marriage may sincerely believe this, it is usually a superficial rationalization. One way to test their sincerity is to ask them to read Judith Wallerstein's book, The Unexpected Legacy of Divorce, which clearly articulates the many detrimental effects of divorce. If they still decide to go through with a divorce after reading these facts, they usually have to admit that it's not the children they are looking out for, but their own selfish desires.

Myth #3
"God led me to this divorce." I repeatedly hear people say, "I know the Bible teaches that divorce usually isn't God's will, but in this case God has given me a real peace that this is right." This statement reveals an improper understanding of spiritual guidance, which elevates a sense of "inner peace" to such a level that it can overrule the clear teaching of Scripture itself. This view of guidance must be specifically exposed and refuted.

One way to do so is to help people see that a sense of inner peace is not a conclusive sign of God's approval. I usually ask people whether they think Jesus felt inner peace in the Garden of Gethsemane. If they try to say yes, I take them to the Gospels and help them see that in fact he was trembling with apprehension and agony. If he had walked out the other side of the garden, he might have had a great sense of relief at escaping from the crucifixion, but in doing so he would have been turning his back on God's will for his life. In a similar way, divorce may promise immediate relief, but in the long run, it too is usually contrary to the will of God.

Myth #4
"Surely a loving God would not want someone to stay in such an unhappy situation." This myth is based on a humanistic presupposition that God's purpose in life revolves around me and my happiness. It is crucial to help suffering people understand that God has something far more important in mind for his people than pleasant lives. His purpose is to conform us to the likeness of his Son (Rom. 8:28-29). The Bible teaches that this requires pruning, melting, and purifying to burn away the dross in our lives, and this is often done through the furnace of suffering. Take them to Hebrews 11 or 1 Peter. The Bible contains many passages about the value and purpose of suffering. We can use those Scriptures to encourage people in their painful situations. For a good perspective on suffering, see Paul Tripp's booklet Suffering: Eternity Makes a Difference.

Myth #5
"I know it's wrong, but God is forgiving." You have probably heard this sort of statement from many different people. Its antidote is Deuteronomy 29:19-21, where Moses warns the Israelites sternly (my paraphrase), "If you presume that you can sin deliberately and then just say magic words and God will forgive you, how great will his wrath be upon you!" It is a frightful thing to sin deliberately. Point people to the example of King David, who willfully sinned against God. God forgave David, but he left consequences that would grieve David for the rest of his life. "The sword will never depart from your house" (2 Sam. 12:10, NIV). David's baby died, and his sons continued to kill each other. David had to bear that on his conscience to his dying day.

And how do people know that God will actually give them a repentant heart after they persist in willful disobedience (see Heb. 3:7-13; 12:16-17; Eph. 4:30; Prov. 28:14)? How can they be sure that God will not turn his face against them and remove his blessings from their lives (Heb. 10:31; 1 Pet. 3:7, 11-12)? Those considering a sinful divorce should not look ahead to a cheap forgiveness, but should turn around and do everything possible to seek reconciliation and a restoration of the marriage.

If you are a Christian who wants to be "salt and light" for the Lord, God will give you opportunities to graciously speak his truth into other Christians' lives. Understanding these excuses used to justify divorce will help you deal directly, lovingly, and biblically with people who are struggling. By God's grace, when true motives are revealed, people will then turn back to the Lord and his church for help.

C.J. Mahaney has entered bloggerdom!

Hey folks, just to let you know...CJ has finally succumbed to establishing his own blog spot, here is the link: Enjoy! http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/Blog/